The West Virginia Mountaineers will kick off Big 12 conference play in a challenging environment on New Year’s Eve.
WVU will face the No. 7-ranked Kansas Jayhawks on the road at Allen Fieldhouse. Both teams enter the matchup with a 9-2 record.
Kansas boasts impressive wins over then-No. 11 Duke and then-No. 9 North Carolina. However, the Jayhawks have also suffered two losses, falling to unranked Missouri and Creighton.
The Jayhawks are led by 7-foot-2 center Hunter Dickinson, a former Michigan transfer who is averaging a double-double with 15.5 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. Senior guard Zeke Mayo is the team’s second-leading scorer, averaging 13.5 points per game while shooting nearly 40% from beyond the arc.
Kansas’ starting lineup is rounded out by KJ Adams Jr., Dajuan Harris Jr., and AJ Storr.
Here’s how the Jayhawks rank in key statistical categories among 364 Division I programs this season:
- Points per game: 63rd (79.2)
- Shooting percentage: 17th (49.8%)
- 3-point percentage: 91st (35.5%)
- Turnovers per game: 50th (10.5)
- Opponent points per game: 43rd (66.0)
- Total rebounding percentage: 56th (53.8%)
The Mountaineers will aim to contain Kansas’ balanced attack and make a statement in their first conference game of the season.
